Ekene Umenwa biography is something many Nollywood movie lovers who stumble on her movie for the first time search on Google. This is because Ekene Umenwa’s personality is charming and you want to know more about her.
Ekene Umenwa Cynthia who is popularly known by her fans as Angel Palazzo or “Jesus Last Born” is a renowned Nollywood actress, content creator, entrepreneur, filmmaker, and event planner.
Aside from her movie career, many of her fans love her for her strong devotion to Christianity, therefore making her their celebrity role model who leads them to Christ.
So, in this Ekene Umenwa biography, you will know about Ekene Umenwa age, state of origin, husband, parents, career, and net worth.
1. Ekene Umenwa age and childhood
Ekenedilichukwu Umenwa Cynthia Angel popularly known as Ekene Umenwa was born on August 27, 1991, in Benin City, Edo State, Nigeria. This means she is currently 33 years old.
Ekene Umenwa state of origin is Anambra State in the southeastern part of Nigeria. She is Igbo by tribe and a devoted Catholic Christian by religion.
Ekene Umenwa grew up in a Christian family in the city of Benin, Edo state where she completed both her primary and secondary school education.
A few years after her secondary school education, Ekene Umenwa eventually passed her JAMB examination and got admission to study in Ebonyi State. She immediately relocated to Ebonyi state for her Tertiary Education, leaving her parents and siblings in Edo State.
After many years of studying at Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki, the brilliant actress graduated with a bachelor of science degree in Biochemistry in 2015.
On Monday, December 4, 2023, Ekene Umenwa revealed in an Instagram live video that she faced lots of struggles while growing up. She recalled how she gained admission into the University when her mates were in their finals.
2. Ekene Umenwa parents
Rumor has it that Ekene Umenwa is the daughter of Nollywood actress Ngozi Ezeonu. This is because of how they perfectly act the role of mother and daughter in many Nollywood movies, coupled with their close resemblance.
Although Ekene Umenwa has on several occasions called Ngozi Ezeonu her mother on social media, she is not Ekene’s biological mother but her Nollywood mother.
Ekene Umenwa is the daughter of devoted Christian parents who attend Catholic church services regularly. Ekene Umenwa’s parents are Mr. Dozie Umenwa and Mrs. Lucy Ogoamaka Umenwa of Igbo Ukwu, a town in Anambra State.
Her father, Mr. Dozie went to Boys Secondary School, Igbo Ukwu in Anambra state and graduated in 1985. After getting married and giving birth to his children, Mr. Dozie Umenwa then traveled to London, United Kingdom for his tertiary education where he lived for nine years. He is now an entrepreneur who lives in Lagos, Nigeria.
Ekene Umenwa’s mother, Mrs. Lucy Ogoamaka Umenwa was born in August 1972. She is currently 52 years old. We get to know her age because Ekene Umenwa bought a car for her mother in August 2022 to celebrate her 50th birthday. Ogoamaka Umenwa is currently a businesswoman who lives in Benin City.
3. Ekene Umenwa siblings
Ekene Umenwa is the first child of her parents’ three daughters, so she has two younger sisters.
The names of Ekene Umenwa’s siblings are Kate Umenwa Osunkwor and Somto Umenwa.
Kate Umenwa is two years younger than Ekene Umenwa. She was born on 21 February 1993 and she is currently 31 years old. Kate Umenwa studied law at Ambrose Alli University (AAU) Ekpoma, Edo State, and graduated in 2013. She is currently an entrepreneur who produces fruit juice known as Kayna Fruits.
Kate Umenwa is currently married to the family of Osunkwor since 7 March 2015. Her marriage is blessed with three lovely children, two boys and a girl. Her eldest child, a daughter who was born on 6 June 2015 is currently 9 years old.
Somto Umenwa is the younger sister of Ekene Umenwa. She was born on 26 March 2003 and she is currently 21 years old. Somto who studied at Federal Government Girls’ College, Benin, Edo State is a Face model, entrepreneur, and ambassador to Ivybeautyskincare.
Somto Umenwa is also an entrepreneur who owns Tees by Sommie. Tees by Sommie is a clothing brand that deals in biker shorts, and leggings.
4. Ekene Umenwa career
Ekene Umenwa’s journey in the world of acting began with humble roots in her school and church where she would partake in school dramas and church plays. This made her have a passion for acting right from the age of 13.
When she grew older to a young adult, Ekene Umenwa already knew that acting was her calling but she was scared to discuss it with her parents because of the kind of family she comes from. This made her pursue a career to study biochemistry in the university to please her parents.
However, after her admission into the University, Ekene Umenwa gathered the courage to pursue her dream career which is acting without her parents’ knowledge.
She then joined the Nollywood movie industry in the year 2011 and started attending movie auditions. Ekene Umenwa eventually got her first movie role when she played the character of a Maid in the movie titled ‘King After Kings’ starring Kenneth Okonkwo and Maureen Solomon.
The movie opened more doors for her and she subsequently played the lead role in the 2013 movie titled “Black Choir” which brought Ekene Umenwa to the limelight.
Early 2014 was Ekene Umenwa’s year as she started getting popular in her school as an actress, but on the other hand, she began doing badly in school. At this time Ekene Umenwa was in her 300 level at Ebonyi State University (EBSU) when she would squeeze out time to do movies.
Because of how stressful it was combining school with acting, Ekene Umenwa decided to take a break from acting to focus more on her education.
After her graduation in 2015, Ekene Umenwa gathered the courage to tell her parents that acting is her calling. Her mother and her father’s siblings kicked against it. They believed that the acting profession was filled with prostitution and other immoralities.
However, to Ekene Umenwa’s surprise, her father was not against her choice of being an actor, which could be because of his exposure having lived in the UK for nine years.
This gave Ekene Umenwa hope that her dream to become a movie star would come through because one important figure in her family was in her support.
It took a year after her graduation for Ekene Umenwa to convince most of her family members to support her in her acting career. In 2016, Ekene Umenwa returned to acting, but it was no longer as it used to be when she started in 2011. This made Ekene Umenwa start building a new fanbase.
To prove to her mother, uncles, and aunts that a Nollywood actress can also live a righteous life, shaped the kind of movies Ekene Umenwa starred in and how she portrayed herself in the industry.
However, in 2019, Ekene Umenwa saw her breakthrough when she starred in the movie titled “Palazzo, ” which gave her the nickname Angel Palazzo. The movie was a hit and brought her the accolades and recognition that she deserved.
Since then, the Nollywood actress has gone on to star in other notable Nollywood movies, making her one of the most sought-after Nollywood actresses in Asaba and Nigeria.
5. Ekene Umenwa net worth
Ekene Umenwa is currently one of the most sought-after female actors in the Nigerian movie industry of recent times, making her one of the highest-earning young actresses with over 60 movies to her name
The talented actress charges around N500,000 and above to appear in a movie role and also charges around N3 million or more to appear in a television series.
Aside from her movie roles, Ekene Umenwa is also a brand influencer and entrepreneur. She is a brand ambassador for more than four companies already and more are still coming.
Her brand-influencing jobs are predominantly for young adults who are inspired by her fame, faith in God, and relatable personality.
Ekene Umenwa is estimated of a net worth of around $200,000 and it increases as time passes. Her major sources of income include her acting career, brand endorsements, YouTube channel, and her businesses such as Ekyevent Confectionary which is an Event planning brand.
Ekene Umenwa’s expensive houses and cars are not known, because she is not the type that flaunts her expensive lifestyle on social media, however, she rides a 6 million Naira Toyota Car.
6. Ekene Umenwa husband
On Sunday, October 22, 2023, Ekene Umenwa announced her engagement to her longtime boyfriend Ifeanyi Ogbodo popularly known as Alex Kleanson.
A few months after their engagement, Ekene walked down the aisle with Alex Kleanson in a glamorous wedding ceremony in late 2023. Ekene Umenwa’s wedding took place on Saturday, November 4, 2023, in Benin City, Edo State where she grew up.
According to Ekene Umenwa in an Instagram live video, her husband paid her bride price on April 16, 2023, in a low-key traditional marriage because of insecurity in the southeastern part of Nigeria where she hails from.
Ekene Umenwa’s husband, Alex Kleanson is a renowned movie producer, filmmaker, actor, realtor, and entrepreneur. He is popularly known for being the owner of NollyTV, a YouTube Channel that uploads original Nollywood movies. His other ventures include Kleanson Concept and Kleason House Empire.
Kleanson was on November 20, 1990, in Enugu state and he is currently 33 years old. This means he is of the same age as his wife, Ekene Umenwa. Alex Kleanson’s state of origin is Enugu State where he was born and brought up.
Alex Kleanson did his primary and secondary school in Enugu State and then proceeded to Caritas University, Enugu where he bagged a bachelor’s degree in computer science. He then furthered his education by earning a Master of Science degree in cybersecurity from the University of Liverpool.
Alex Kleanson climbed the creative ladder of filmmaking when he started his professional career at NELTV as a manager. He then proceeded to work at Nollywood Picture TV, where he served as both Webmaster and Senior Information Technology Manager.
Finally, Alex Kleanson served as the General Manager of Firstnolly TV before eventually creating his own movie production company known as NollyTV and other business ventures. Today, Alex Klean has a net worth of around $600,000.
His wedding with Ekene Umenwa added their union among the Nollywood Couples who got married after acting as couples in movies. This is because Ekene Umenwa and Alex Kleanson met on the set of “Palazzo” and started dating shortly after.
7. Ekene Umenwa movies and awards
Ekene Umenwa is a very successful and influential actress, especially among Christian movie lovers. Her brand in Nollywood revolves around being an example of a Christian celebrity who uses her platform to win souls for Christ.
Ekene Umenwa uses her voice to preach to young people about Christ, this is evidenced in her association with gospel singers, Moses Bliss and Ebuka Song.
Aside from her Christian lifestyle, Ekene Umenwa is known for her comic roles in movies. She has acted alongside top Nollywood actors such as Zubby Michael, Stan Nze, Eucharia Anunobi, Flash Boy, Regina Daniels, Destiny Etiko, Mercy Johnson, and many others.
Ekene Umenwa has a good working relationship with her colleagues in the movie Industry which is evident in the way she shares beautiful moments with them on social media
She has starred in more than 60 movies and still counting. Ekene Umenwa movies include Blind Queen, Palazzo, Blind Affection, Death Wish, The Favourite, The Coming, The Circle, The Arrival, Loving Help, The Choice, Cry Of A Saint, Living In Christ, Sanco Republic, and My Decision. A Taste of Good Life, Kaduna Nzeogwu, My Money Bag, Madam Cash, and many more.
8. Conclusion
The above article is Ekene Umenwa biography and we hope it helps you know who the actress, comedian, and businesswoman is, including her age, husband, state of origin, parents, career, and net worth.
As a talented and beautifully endowed actress, Ekene Umenwa has left an indelible mark on the Nollywood landscape. Her dedication, passion, and ability to showcase Christ in whatever she does have solidified her place as a prominent figure in the Nigerian film industry.
It has also proven to her family, colleagues, and movie lovers, that one can be a movie star and live a moral life that is worth emulating in Christainhood.
She continues to inspire and empower emerging actresses to follow their dreams and make their mark in the world of entertainment. Ekene Umenwa has contributed to various philanthropic activities, especially in the youth’s education, health, and empowerment.
In addition to her appealing persona, Ekene Umenwa is also dedicated to maintaining her ground in the movie industry with the way she effortlessly interprets movie roles.
Ekene Umenwa’s journey is a testament to the power of God, determination, and a genuine love for the act of acting and we hope this Ekene Umenwa biography inspires you to be great in your chosen career.
